Latest news with #WoolyDevil
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Yahoo
The Best National Parks To Visit In March And All Of Spring
Spring is a great time to get outside and visit many of the national parks across the United States. By March, many of these stunning sites are coming out of their winter slumber, plants are blooming and temperatures are warming, but the crowds of summer aren't there. So here's our short, but not exhaustive list of parks where you can't go wrong with a visit in March or early spring. From its soaring peaks to the depths of the canyon floor, this park in California has options for beginners, seasoned hikers and climbers, and families. It's also one of the few places where you have the chance to see the California condor in the wild. Now here's the bonus to visiting in March through May: March brings the end of the rainy season, so it's the peak blooming season for the park's wildflowers. The average high temperatures are comfortable, staying around 68 degrees. This park in southwestern Texas is one of the most remote in the country, so the crowds are small. And the park is huge – we're talking 800,000 acres serving up mountains and desert landscapes filled with diverse flora and fauna. In fact, a new plant species was discovered there in 2024; the tiny plant growing among the desert rocks was named "Wooly Devil." With average high temperatures in the mid-70s, March is a great time to see a Wooly Devil for yourself. This park in New Mexico is home to the largest gypsum dunefield on the planet. It's so large, it can be seen from space. The white sand dunes can get as tall as 60 feet and sledding on them is one of the most popular activities. It's one of the newer national parks – it was established in 2019 – and it's also relatively small, covering just 176,000 acres. All that wide-open space can be oppressively hot during the summer, but in March, high temperatures hang out in the low 70s and it's one of the driest months in the region. Congaree National Park in South Carolina is home to the largest old growth bottomland hardwood forest in the Southeast. A winding boardwalk trail makes it an easy hike for visitors, but you can also canoe and kayak your way through the heart of the park on Cedar Creek. March is a great time to visit this park because the mosquitoes are not out in full force. And although temperatures usually stay in the high 60s, rainfall is common this time of year, so you could feel a little muggy. If you're looking for a water adventure, Biscayne National Park in Florida is the place for you. Just south of Miami, 95% of the park is water and it's home to one of the largest coral reef systems in the world. You can kayak, paddleboard, boat, fish, snorkel and scuba dive. This watery wonderland is ideal in March because the warmer temperatures make the water perfect for diving in. The average high for this time of year is about 77 degrees. Yellowstone Traffic Jam: Bison Herd Meets Snowmobilers Here's Why You Should Participate In 'No Mow March' Spring Into Action: Get Your Home Ready For The Season
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Fuzzy new 'wooly devil' plant species discovered at Texas national park
BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK, Texas – Two national park staff members made an astonishing discovery while walking through Texas' Big Bend National Park last year that has resulted in a new classification of a plant species. The park rangers noticed tiny plants sprinkled among desert rocks while walking in a remote area of the park last March. The two realized the flowers didn't look like anything they had seen before. The rangers took photos of their discovery and upon further investigation, it was determined the plant was previously unknown to science. The results of a genetic analysis have now revealed the plant is so distinctive that it was not merely a new plant species. It is best classified as an entirely new genus within the Asteraceae (Daisy) family. This is the first new genus and species of plant discovered in a National Park in over 50 years, according to the California Academy of Sciences. The name Ovicula Biradiata was given based on its fascinating appearance. Ovicula means "Tiny Sheep," in reference to the fuzzy white "wool" that covers the leaves. Biradiata references the two ray petals in each flower. Space Force Reveals Image Snapped By Top Secret Space Plane For First Time Researchers working on the plant have also referred to it as the "Wooly Devil." "I'm excited to discover whether there are other populations in the park, details of its life cycle, what are the pollinators, and due to the current drought, if it will be observed at all this spring," said Big Bend National Park Superintendent Anjna O'Connor. Big Bend National Park covers over 800,000 acres and has a wide range of habitat types, including riparian ecosystems, low desert bajadas, and sky island woodlands at higher elevations, according to the National Park article source: Fuzzy new 'wooly devil' plant species discovered at Texas national park
USA Today
25-02-2025
- Science
- USA Today
Meet the 'Wooly Devil,' the new plant species discovered at Big Bend National Park
Meet the 'Wooly Devil,' the new plant species discovered at Big Bend National Park Walking through the boundless landscape of red rocks and limestone cliffs in Texas' Big Bend National Park last March, a volunteer and a park ranger came across a plant they didn't recognize. It was tiny – measuring only a few centimeters in length – with striking red petals and green leaves covered in what appeared to be thick white wool. Deb Manley, the volunteer, snapped pictures of the plant and uploaded them to the app iNaturalists, where botanists from around the globe chimed in to help identify the mysterious plant. But with no immediate answers, she and the ranger consulted herbarium records, plant publications and local experts. Still, the plant's identity eluded them and raised questions. Now, more than a year later, scientists have confirmed that what they came across in the arid Chihuahuan Desert was an entirely new plant species – the first such discovery to take place within a U.S. National Park in nearly half a century, Big Bend National Park announced on Monday. A newly published study in the botanical journal PhytoKeys said the Ovicula biradiata, or the "Wooly Devil" as botanists have come to call it, is not only a new species but an entirely new genus within the daisy and sunflower family. "O. biradiata is a member of the sunflower family, although it does not resemble its sunburst-shaped relatives at first glance," Isaac Lichter Marck, one of the authors of the study, told the California Academy of Sciences, which was involved in the research. "After sequencing its DNA and comparing it with other specimens in the Academy's herbarium, we discovered that this small, fuzzy plant is not only a new species within the sunflower group, but it is also distinct enough from its closest relatives to warrant an entirely new genus.' The plant ranges in size from less than one centimeter to 3 to 7 centimeters across, researchers said. The Wooly Devil is what botanists refer to as a "belly plant," small plants that can only be property seen while laying on the ground. As suggested by its location – among desert rocks in a remote area in the northern reaches of the park – the plant can survive in rocky, drought-stricken environments. More: How National Park Service layoffs could stretch some parks to their limits Its name is inspired by its appearance. Ovicula means tiny sheep, a references to the white 'wool' that covers the small plant's leaves. Biradiata is a reference to the strap-shaped petals in each flower. 'Now that the species has been identified and named, there is a tremendous amount we have yet to learn about it,' said Big Bend National Park Superintendent Anjna O'Connor. 'I'm excited to discover whether there are other populations in the park, details of its life cycle, what are the pollinators, and due to the current drought, if it will be observed at all this spring.' While scientists will study it at the park, other researchers are investigating whether it has any possible medicinal properties. Keily Peralta, a coauthor of the study, told the California Academy of Sciences that she and others researchers have noticed the "Wooly Devil" has glands that are "known to possess compounds with anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties in other plants within the sunflower family." More: The National Park Service is grappling with massive layoffs. What you should know. 'While further research is needed to determine these properties, this discovery underscores the potential knowledge we stand to gain from preserving plant diversity in fragile desert ecosystems," she added. Despite the plant's exceptional resilience in the desert, the Wooly Devil, like countless plant species across the globe, faces an existential threat from climate change, Marck said. 'As climate change pushes deserts to become hotter and drier, highly specialized plants like the wooly devil face extinction," he said. "We have only observed this plant in three narrow locations across the northernmost corner of the park, and it's possible that we've documented a species that is already on its way out.'
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
New plant species discovered at Big Bend National Park in Texas
A new plant species called the Wooly Devil has been discovered at Big Bend National Park in Texas, the National Park Service announced Monday. The Wooly Devil, or Ovicula biradiata, was first spotted by botany volunteer Deb Manley and a park ranger in March 2024, according to the park service. The tiny, fuzzy-looking plants with yellow flowers growing among desert rocks in a remote area on the northern end of the park were not anything like they had seen before. After searching plant databases, consulting experts and even asking for answers online, park officials said they began to realize that they had found something special. It's the first time a new species of plant has been found at a U.S. national park in nearly 50 years, according to the California Academy of Sciences, which joined Big Bend National Park staff and Sul Ross State University to study the Wooly Devil. According to researchers, who published their findings in peer-reviewed botanical journal PhytoKeys, the Wooly Devil is in the daisy family and it is closely related to paperflowers and bitterweed, both of which have yellow flowers. However, DNA analysis showed that the plant is so genetically distinct that it had to be considered a new genus. The Wooly Devil is much smaller than its sister plants, according to the researchers, ranging from less than 1 centimeter to 3-7 centimeters across. It was given the formal name Ovicula, meaning tiny sheep, and biradiata, a reference to the two ray-like petals in each flower. "Now that the species has been identified and named, there is a tremendous amount we have yet to learn about it," Big Bend National Park Superintendent Anjna O'Connor said in the news release. Big Bend, in southwest Texas, is massive, covering more than 800,000 acres and part of the Chihuahuan Desert, which is considered the most diverse desert ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere. Lichter Marck, one of the taxonomists who studied the Wooly Devil, told the California Academy of Sciences that plants thriving in the desert are quite unique because they have evolved to withstand extreme weather conditions — but climate change still poses a threat to their existence. "We have only observed this plant in three narrow locations across the northernmost corner of the park, and it's possible that we've documented a species that is already on its way out," Marck said. Holocaust survivors on bearing witness Latest news on Pope Francis' health after lung infection, kidney failure Behind the scenes of "Survivor" Season 48
CBS News
25-02-2025
- Science
- CBS News
See the "Wooly Devil," new plant species discovered at a U.S. national park for the first time in nearly 50 years
A new plant species called the Wooly Devil has been discovered at Big Bend National Park in Texas, the National Park Service announced Monday. The Wooly Devil, or Ovicula biradiata, was first spotted by botany volunteer Deb Manley and a park ranger in March 2024, according to the park service. The tiny, fuzzy-looking plants with yellow flowers growing among desert rocks in a remote area on the northern end of the park were not anything like they had seen before. After searching plant databases, consulting experts and even asking for answers online, park officials said they began to realize that they had found something special. It's the first time a new species of plant has been found at a U.S. national park in nearly 50 years, according to the California Academy of Science s, which joined Big Bend National Park staff and Sul Ross State University to study the Wooly Devil. According to researchers, who published their findings in peer-reviewed botanical journal PhytoKeys, the Wooly Devil is in the daisy family and it is closely related to paperflowers and bitterweed, both of which have yellow flowers. However, DNA analysis showed that the plant is so genetically distinct that it had to be considered a new genus. The Wooly Devil is much smaller than its sister plants, according to the researchers, ranging from less than 1 centimeter to 3-7 centimeters across. It was given the formal name Ovicula, meaning tiny sheep, and biradiata, a reference to the two ray-like petals in each flower. "Now that the species has been identified and named, there is a tremendous amount we have yet to learn about it," Big Bend National Park Superintendent Anjna O'Connor said in the news release. Big Bend, in southwest Texas, is massive, covering more than 800,000 acres and part of the Chihuahuan Desert, which is considered the most diverse desert ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere. Lichter Marck, one of the taxonomists who studied the Wooly Devil, told the California Academy of Sciences that plants thriving in the desert are quite unique because they have evolved to withstand extreme weather conditions — but climate change still poses a threat to their existence. "We have only observed this plant in three narrow locations across the northernmost corner of the park, and it's possible that we've documented a species that is already on its way out," Marck said.
